Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” Is (Still) the Summer Anthem of 2013

Posted July 19, 2013 by J Matthew Cobb in Features

Robin Thicke might have gotten the last laugh, but Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” is still the best summer anthem of the year

To some it doesn’t matter. And surely the summer months are usually overrunning with uptempo breezy jams. This year is no exception. Miley Cyrus‘ wild girl rump “We Can’t Stop” continues to impress analysts by showing its presence on radio playlists and multiple charts. And then there’s Robin Thicke‘s Marvin Gaye-teased “Blurred Lines,” which is almost impossible to shake. It’s sexy, provocative and dangerously catchy, even causing Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel to shake his bon-bon like he’s a twerker in training.

Meanwhile, Icona Pop‘s “I Love It,” a 2012 treat, is resuscitating its stronghold on the ears of beach party goers and isn’t fading from the landscape of licensing for commercial use. And how can we forget Justin Timberlake’s latest single, “Take Back the Night,” which is a precursor to what we might hear on his forthcoming follow-up to The 20/20 Experience. It’s also making major impact now. His retro throwback to MJ may very well be the last of 2013’s great summer jams, if the public’s taste buds don’t change. But if you noticed the common thread in all of those songs, except for the slow burner of Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop,” they all follow a familiar template of retro. There’s pounds of synths, lots of disco and the lyrical persuasion to explore the rebellions of youthful life. One song in particular blasts past the competition: Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky.”

Before this post starts to feel like some campy endorsement, let me set things up first, before I go into the overkill.

Summer songs need more than simple, accessible lyrics about sex in order to become timeless summer anthems. And they should be more than a gateway into fun. Okay, the Beach Boys” “I Get Around “and “Surfin’ USA” may not be the best examples of summer anthems (although they certainly are timeless examples of summer fun), but those anthems were also primitive to what we have today. Pop music has evolved, and so has the prototype of summer anthems.

“Get Lucky,” Daft Punk’s lead single off of their best-selling Random Access Memories LP, is a good example of what a summer anthem should be. Never mind the smart, ingenious marketing that went behind it. Examining the song is sufficient enough. Unlike Thicke’s naughty X-rated episode, “Get Lucky” does a great job in producing something that tweens and adults can both latch on to without feeling uncomfortable around the grandparents. Plus the opening lines from guest vocalist Pharrell Williams sounds like some imagery that came out of an EW&F serpentine fire: “Like the legend of the phoenix/All ends with new beginnings.” It sounds sophisticated and feels like something that would’ve come from a brainiac. The song is about late-night, close-the-door voyages, but it cleverly injects a mélange of lyrics loaded with determination and celebration that goes beyond the traditional booty call aesthetic: “We’ve come too far to give up who we are/So let’s raise the bar and our cups to the stars.” At the heart of the song is its undeniable four-on-the-floor Chic-inspired tempo, courtesy of Nile Rodgers‘ funky guitar strumming and John Robinson’s glorious drumming. Add in Daft Punk’s robotic chants and you’ve got the ears of those hungry for the future. All of this sums up why “Get Lucky” trumps the competition.

Let it be said that “Get Lucky” is not the greatest summer anthem to ever hit the radio, but it’s one of the finest to be done according to recent memory. And that’s if you’re probably unfamiliar to Chic’s “Good Times.” Now that was one hell of a summer anthem.\

In the meantime, cue the Kanye West verbiage.